Every figure shows its source. Where a source is missing, the number is a placeholder — and it is never written as fact.

By GamGem ResearchLast updated 7 Oct 2026

Dust 2 strats — T default, CT setup and executesDust II

Active Duty: Ancient · Anubis · Cache · Dust II · Inferno · Mirage · Nuke (Cache replaced Overpass, Valve update 8 Jul 2026)
Plan summary

Default: Long Doors · Long Doors · Top Mid · Catwalk · Upper Tunnels — regroup at Long A.

Stop / rotate / save if: Long Doors: Once Long is won, do not idle: pressure A, hold the space, or combine with Short.

T default · 4 guides · newest 16 Aug 2026

Coordination budgettwo people listening

Round typegrenades priced

Players alivemissing-player rule

Five role slotspick the slot nearest your spawn — no names

Ordered routespawn → places → regroup

schematic · not a Valve radar
  1. 1T Spawnbuy, split the utility
  2. 2Long DoorsFlash through Long Doors and fight for Long.
  3. 3Long DoorsSecond Long player: trade the first one and help hold Long.
  4. 4Top MidWatch Mid (Xbox smoke at round start), check CT movement.
  5. 5CatwalkSupport from Catwalk/Short once Mid is safe.
  6. 6Upper TunnelsLurk/hold Upper Tunnels to stop B pushes.
  7. 7Long Aregroup before the hit

Round clock1:55 → 0:00

1:550:001:491:481:471:451:401:300:20
  • 1:49Running with a knife, a T reaches Long Doors in about 6 seconds.
  • 1:48A CT reaches Long in about 7 seconds, just after the Ts can reach Long Doors.
  • 1:47Long execute: three players should be at Long corner by 8 seconds.
  • 1:45CTs hold default positions and listen for the first 10 seconds.
  • 1:40A five-man B rush that exits the tunnels before 1:40 is very hard to stop without an aggressive tunnel CT.
  • 1:30By 25 seconds in, CTs should have identified the T plan and committed to a rotation.
  • 0:20Latest point to call a full A-to-B CT rotation (it takes about 8–9 seconds).
Round
1:55
Bomb after plant
40 s
Defuse, no kit
10 s
Defuse, kit
5 s
Valve: round and bomb · defuse. Guide times are theirs, not measured by us.

Situation → Plan

Coordination load · Long take into A
Standard6
Solo-queue1
= our count of actions that must land together · no win-rate claims

T default3 guides agree

schematic · not a Valve radar
  1. 1Long Doors — Flash through Long Doors and fight for Long.finds out: Whether CTs contest Long and where the Long player/AWP sits.stop if: Once Long is won, do not idle: pressure A, hold the space, or combine with Short.
  2. 2Long Doors — Second Long player: trade the first one and help hold Long.finds out: Same Long information; confirms CT numbers on the A side.stop if: Same as the first Long player.
  3. 3Top Mid — Watch Mid (Xbox smoke at round start), check CT movement.finds out: Mid CT/AWP position and rotations; this information usually decides the site.stop if: Stays as the Mid watcher; Mid must not be left empty.
  4. 4Catwalk — Support from Catwalk/Short once Mid is safe.finds out: CT presence on Short and the A site from above.
  5. 5Upper Tunnels — Lurk/hold Upper Tunnels to stop B pushes.finds out: B-side CT aggression through the tunnels.stop if: Later joins a B hit, drops to Lower Tunnels for Mid pressure, or keeps lurking.
Regroup: Long AOnly the Long-control default names it (take Long, then set up for an A execute); no source gives a universal regroup spot.4 guides · newest 16 Aug 2026

CT setup4 guides

schematic · not a Valve radar
  1. 1Pit — Long player (often the AWP): hold Long from Pit or the platform, do not over-peek Long Doors, fall back toward site if outnumbered.
  2. 2A Short — Short/Catwalk player: stop Short and Mid-to-A pushes, help the Mid player, rotate when needed.
  3. 3CT Mid — Mid player: watch Mid Doors, Lower Tunnels and Catwalk movement; call a Mid-to-B split early.
  4. 4B Window — Second B player: early tunnel info from Window and a crossfire with the site anchor.
  5. 5Upper Tunnels — B anchor: hold the Upper Tunnels exit from cover on site; delay, call, and wait for rotations instead of taking every fight.
When: Balanced default before the T plan is known.cswiki calls the same layout 'Standard 1-1-2-1' (Long, Mid, two B, Short).5 guides · newest 16 Aug 2026

Mid control decision tree

Can we get the Xbox smoke down and move through Mid Doors to Xbox/Catwalk without giving the CT AWP a pick?
Xbox smoke is up and Mid Doors is crossed.Hold Xbox behind the smoke; only run Catwalk after Mid and Lower are checked.Split A (Short plus Long) or go Mid-to-B.
A CT (often the AWP) is holding Mid Doors.Smoke Mid Doors and flash before crossing, or send a lurker to Lower Tunnels for info.Use the Lower/Mid info to choose the site and catch rotators.
CTs over-rotate toward Short pressure.Turn the Mid control into a Mid-to-B split.Smoke the CT side of Mid and enter B Doors as the Tunnels group exits.
5 guides · newest 10 Jun 2026

Solo-queue call ladder

  1. 1Agree on one simple default each round; full executes rarely work with randoms. guide
  2. 2Learn and throw your own key smokes instead of counting on teammates to do it. guide
  3. 3Call exact numbers, positions (callouts, not "left"), utility you see and kills you get; say when you are guessing and how old your information is. guide
  4. 4Announce anything that departs from the plan — taking the bomb elsewhere or lurking; an unannounced lurk just leaves the team a player down. guide
  5. 5If unsure what to play, take support: learn a handful of grenades, throw them for others and trade. guide
  6. 6Stay quiet in clutches unless the info is vital, never flame randoms, mute if needed. guide
  7. 7Settle buys together in freeze time; players with spare money drop weapons for poorer teammates. guide
Version shown: two-player calls

Executes4 from the guides

  • Call it when: Classic A hit, usually called when the T side has a good Long spawn.Entry order: Flash through Long Doors and win (or avoid) the Pit fight with trades; the cross smoke must bloom before anyone pushes the corner; then cross to site together, with a Catwalk player pinching if available.Plant: Behind the box on the A platform (visible from Long)Post-plant: Spread out instead of stacking the site: Goose, Long Pit, Elevator and the Short corner.$1,600 of grenades at Valve’s prices — whether the round can carry it is the economy board’s call.8 guides · newest 16 Aug 2026

Retake options

  • 2-player A site retakeRoute: via CT Spawn and A ShortFirst utility: Molotov the default plant from Catwalk (smoke in front of you first) and pop-flash over Short before pushing the cross.Clear first: Not stated by the guides.Save instead if: no guide states a line — see the save rules below.Source: one from CT Cross, one from Catwalk. profilerr adds that CT Spawn alone is the worst retake route and needs players on Catwalk or Long too. Not stated; common T post-plant spots are Goose, Long Pit, Elevator and the Short corner (cswiki). No source gives a save rule; boostroom only says not to retake alone into a set site.5 guides · newest 16 Aug 2026

Utility order(Long take into A)

  1. 1. Smoke → Long DoorsLong Corner smoke thrown from T Spawn; lands at the corner just past Long Doors.
  2. 2. Flash → Long DoorsFlash through Long Doors before the first player pushes.
  3. 3. Smoke → CT SpawnCT cross smoke from Long; blocks the CT-to-A crossing.
  4. 4. Molotov → A Car
  5. 5. Molotov → Goose
The lineups live on the Dust II utility page — this list is the order only.

Round review: errors → repairs

If CTs push / we lose a player

  • Stay tradeable: keep enough spacing that a teammate can punish your killer — not stacked on top of each other, not so far back that the defender escapes. guide
  • The trading player swings right after first contact, before the enemy can reset; on a numbers advantage, count down a double peek. guide
  • Do not be the first to see an enemy unless the trade or your utility is ready; an entry only works as a pair, and an untraded first death gives the enemy free value. guide
  • On CT side, being tradeable means crossfires, a support angle or a fallback route rather than a lone early fight. guide
  • In retakes, enter together and trade instantly instead of trickling in. guide

Ask about this plan

Turn the Mid control into a Mid-to-B split. Then: Smoke the CT side of Mid and enter B Doors as the Tunnels group exits.rows: mid decision tree · Dust II

Screenshot briefing

Dust II · T · I have no caller
PLAN: Default: Long Doors · Long Doors · Top Mid · Catwalk · Upper Tunnels — regroup at Long A.
1 Long Doors: Flash through Long Doors and fight for Long.
2 Long Doors: Second Long player: trade the first one and help hold Long.
3 Top Mid: Watch Mid (Xbox smoke at round start), check CT movement.
4 Catwalk: Support from Catwalk/Short once Mid is safe.
5 Upper Tunnels: Lurk/hold Upper Tunnels to stop B pushes.
STOP: Long Doors: Once Long is won, do not idle: pressure A, hold the space, or combine with Short.
REGROUP: Long A

Sources10 guides

How fresh

Newest guide 16 Aug 2026Valve’s latest change to Dust II, 8 Jul 2026: “Clipping adjustment Outside Tunnel” — guides from before it (the oldest is 25 Apr 2024) may not show it.
  • All sources are CS2-era (after 2023-09-01). Valve's 2024-07-23 patch changed the crates under Catwalk so a CT can jump up without a boost; the GGRecon guide predates it. Dust II has no B-site interior callout in the required list, so on-site B positions are mapped to the nearest listed callout with a note.
  • 2024-07-23: Crates below Catwalk adjusted so a player can reach Catwalk without a teammate's boost (helps CTs fight Mid).

Contradictions

5
  • Name of the standard CT setupOne view: 2-1-2 (two A, one Mid, two B).Another: cswiki labels the same layout 1-1-2-1; boostroom uses one B plus a flexible support player.
  • Is B easy to hold?One view: B is the easier site to defend, so two players are enough there.Another: B is easier to take but harder to hold.
  • Which retake is harderOne view: A retakes are generally harder than B.Another: B is one of the hardest retakes in the game.
  • A plant spotOne view: Plant for Goose (hardest retake).Another: Plant behind the platform box for Long visibility, or in the open for Short/CT coverage.
  • B rush route nameOne view: cs2hype sends the five-man B rush through 'Lower Tunnels'.Another: Other guides throw the B rush flashes from Upper Tunnels (Lower Tunnels leads to Mid).

Why this plan?

All five slots filled — no gaps.

Each line on this board is a row from a guide — a default, a setup, a branch, an execute — cited where it shows. The missing-player rule, the swap rule and the coordination count are ours, and say so.

Entry:
First player into contested space; job is to win the opening duel or die where a teammate can trade and take the space.
Support:
Throws most of the set utility, flashes for others and is the trade behind the entry.
Lurk:
Plays away from the main group, holds ground the team left, cuts rotations and closes late rounds — with timing agreed with the team.
AWPer:
Carries the team's most expensive weapon to close or open long sightlines; a team purchase, not a personal one.
IGL:
Calls the round, reads it mid-round and manages the team's money.
Anchor:
CT who holds a site alone or in a pair and is judged on surviving long enough for help, using delay utility.
Rotator:
CT who floats between areas and decides when the noise is real before moving.

Plans in our words from the guides each part cites · no match data, no player names, no map renders · plans are conventions, not “the meta”.